Kayak Adventures on the Lakes of Arizona

For something to do, my wife Karen and I took a kayaking lesson on Lake Mead in Nevada in the summer of 2007. After the lesson, we decided that this was something that we would enjoy doing. We had had canoes and windsurfers when our kids were younger so kayaking seemed to be a fit for us. In the fall we purchased two Necky Manitou 14 foot kayaks. Since then we have had them out on several of the Arizona lakes.

(Click on photos to enlarge)

Alamo Lake: Alamo Lake is a desert lake northwest of Phoenix.

Carnero Lake: Carnero Lake is in the White Mountains west of Springerville. It is a small lake that can be very weedy. When it does not freeze over, fish can grow very large. I have seen them--not caught them!

Arivaca Lake: Arivaca Lake is south of Tucson. There are a couple of arms to explore.

Blue Ridge Reservoir: Blue Ridge is one of our favorite lakes to paddle. It is on the Mogollon Rim north of Payson.

Parker Canyon Lake: This is another one of our local lakes. It is large enough to get a pretty good work out.

Riggs Lake: Riggs Lake is in the Graham Mountains near Safford Arizona. The setting for the lake is very nice, but it is a very long, and slow drive to this lake.

Knoll Lake: Knoll Lake is on the Mogollon Rim. We have had the best luck fishing from the kayaks on this lake.